Reading and Calculating Time for 11+ Maths (CEM & GL)
21 October 2026
Why time questions matter
Understanding how to read and calculate time is a key skill for the 11+ maths exams. Time questions appear in both CEM and GL papers, often testing more than just reading a clock. Children need to be able to convert between hours and minutes, and work out how much time has passed between two events.
Reading time on clocks
Children should be confident reading both analogue and digital clocks. Practice recognising times like quarter past, half past and quarter to the hour. Make sure your child can convert between 12-hour and 24-hour formats, as both may appear in 11+ questions.
Calculating time differences
To solve time interval questions, children must compare start and end times. It helps to count up in steps: first to the next hour, then add the remaining minutes. Remind your child that 60 minutes make one hour, so ordinary subtraction does not always work.
Worked example
If a train journey starts at 14:15 and ends at 15:40, how long is the journey?
First, count from 14:15 to 15:15. That is exactly 1 hour.
Next, count from 15:15 to 15:40. That is 25 minutes.
Add the two intervals together: 1 hour + 25 minutes.
The correct answer is 1 hour 25 minutes.
Key insight: Use real clocks at home to practise reading and calculating time spans together. Encourage your child to explain each step aloud, as this builds confidence for exam questions.
